The Loch Ness Monster or Nessie (Scottish Gaelic: Uilebheist Loch Nis) is a cryptid that has been allegedly sighted in Scotland’s Loch Ness. The most common speculation is that the creature represents a line of long-surviving plesiosaurs, although other theories have been proposed over the years. The scientific community regards the Loch Ness Monster as an urban legend, given that no specimen has ever been discovered, but it remains one of the world’s best-known paranormal phenomena. The loch ness monster is a legendary creature in Scottish folklore. The loch monster also referred to as the Nessie (or the Loch Ness Monster), is some kind of large aquatic creature said to inhabit Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands. The monster has been an inspiration for many works of art, literature, films, video games, and other media and several people have claimed to see this creature at various times throughout history.
Three categories of explanation dominate the modern scientific and cryptozoological literature on the creature: natural causes, hoaxes, and paranormal explanations. Natural explanations include that the sightings are primarily misidentifications of mundane objects—such as logs, waves, or swimming deer and otters—which are generally considered unlikely to survive in Loch Ness’s cold waters; that they are examples of new or unknown species of animals which inhabit the lake; or that they are considering that a population of large fish—including some species known to grow to considerable size and weight, such as lampreys or salmon—might explain sightings without the need for an unknown animal.
Hoaxes were initially suggested in order to hide commercial fish catches but have mostly been discounted. Some cryptozoologists have suggested that the creature might be a surviving plesiosaur. In addition, sightings of animals not normally found in Loch Ness (such as hippos and crocodiles) are common in many other parts of the world and commonly attributed to hoaxes. Every year, hundreds of visitors to the Loch Ness Area in Scotland arrive at loch ness to see the alleged creature that lives in Loch Ness. For decades several organizations have conducted research on this so-called “monstrous phenomenon”. However, several of them have ended their investigations due to a lack of proof. For now, no serious researcher is working on this subject anymore.
For many years, Nessie was little more than an unusual and romantic anecdote within the scientific community, maintained by scientists who accepted it as a true phenomenon notwithstanding repeated negative data from official sources. However, interest in the monster began to increase rapidly during the 1970s due to several “sightings” by various witnesses that were anecdotal evidence of a large animal inhabiting Loch Ness, and several expeditions that researched such reports.
The scientific community began to give serious consideration to the possibility that a large unknown animal might inhabit the lake, though most scientists pay little serious attention to it. Nevertheless, scientific interest increased further during the 1980s as new technologies enabled the better study of the loch and its environs. Many tourists visit Loch Ness for the scenery, both from outside Scotland and from within Scotland but there are also many who would like to see Loch Ness for what it really is – a deep, dark, mysterious lake said to be home to a monster.
History
The earliest report of a sighting comes from the Irish monk Saint Columba, who is claimed to have saved a man in 565 from the water beast in the River Ness. However, some dispute this account as it was written two centuries after the event.
Hugh Gray’s photograph taken near Foyers on November 12, 1933, was the first picture alleged to depict the monster. It was somewhat blurred, and it has been noted that if one examines closely the head of a dog can be recognized. Gray had taken his Labrador for a walk that day and it is speculated that the photo depicts his dog retrieving a stick from the loch. Others have proposed that the photograph depicts an otter or a swan. The original negative was lost. However, in 1963, Maurice Burton came into “possession of two lantern slides, contact positives from the original negative” and when projected onto a screen they revealed an “otter rolling at the surface in characteristic fashion.
The first photograph of the Loch Ness Monsters head and neck was reportedly taken in 1934 by Glasgow gynecologist Kenneth Wilson, which showed a small head and neck rising from the water. The image became known as the “surgeon’s photograph”. The picture was widely published and became known as the best evidence of Nessie’s existence. However, criticisms soon emerged claiming that the head and neck visible in this picture were those of a toy submarine. It was proven a hoax many years later, sadly.
Loch Ness (/ˌlɒx ˈnɛs/; Scottish Gaelic: Loch Ni [l̪ˠɔx ˈniʃ]) is a large, deep, freshwater loch in the Scottish Highlands extending for approximately 37 kilometres (23 miles) southwest of Inverness. Its surface is 16 metres (52 feet) above sea level. Loch Ness is best known for alleged sightings of the cryptid known as "Nessie".
- The lake has been the inspiration for numerous works of art and literature.
- There are many possible explanations for the existence of Loch Ness, ranging from a gigantic eel in a deep freshwater loch to suggestions that it could be a plesiosaur.